Howard the Donkey: "Bar the Press"

Howard (the Donkey) Dean is not going to win any friends in the press with this statement:

The head of the Democratic Party said Wednesday that the best way to get presidential candidates to talk frankly about issues is to lock out the media.

During the Mortgage Bankers Association conference, a banker expressed frustration with candidates who only talk in sound bites and wondered how that could be changed. Howard Dean, once a presidential candidate, offered a simple solution.

"I suggest you have candidates in to meetings like this and bar the press," Dean said.

If Howard thinks that keeping the press away will knock the candidates off their pre-packaged statements, he hasn't been paying attention to the world of the new media. Maybe the accredited press corps won't be there, but there's a good chance that some lowly blogger might be and the candidates words will get out anyway. There's no way any of them will let their $400 haircuts down in front of voters with that risk hanging over their heads.